Preparing RetroArch for Steam Deck (C64, Amiga, MAME, etc.), Commands & Layout

[Tom_Tannhäuser]

Hi everyone!

I'm still wondering if it's better to use RetroArch or some RetroPie setup for the upcoming Steam Deck. Currently I'm trying RetroArch (as a noob). In doing so, I am stumbling over some problems. First, some questions about the layout:

1. is it possible to access games in RetroArch comfortably from an overview of cover motifs (packshots), as in RetroPie?

2 For me, C64 and Amiga 500 games are primarily of interest. I am currently collecting some floppy disks. For the Amiga emulators they are already unpacked, C64 games I load from packed ZIPs. Are there any advantages or disadvantages by keeping the games in ZIP files? I suppose ZIPs make directories cleaner. I'm still looking for the best possible way to organise everything neatly. But is it at all solvable by ZIP when changing or turning over disks?

3. can manuals/copy protection disks be opened and read directly via RetroArch while a game is running? Do they have to be unpacked beforehand and do they have to be in the same directory?

I stumbled across the following problems during my first attempts with RetroArch:

- Simple inputs in Basic (C64) are not possible. The RetroArch input UI is always above it. If I press SPACE, for example, I activate RetroArch's fast forward function, but this does not lead to an input in BASIC. How can the UI simply be deactivated for inputs via keyboard?

- When there's a request to turn over or change a disk, how do I get to the desired function via the RetroArch UI without interrupting the running game?

- In my C64 experiments I usually load a standard C64 core or alternatively the "fast" version. What is the difference between Fast and Standard? Also, very often I just end up at the BASIC screen with the cursor prompt, after loading a D64 file. Nothing happens afterwards. Not even after entering RUN (which I manage awkwardly via my XBox controller).

Still there's a ton to learn and to do. Thanks in advance for any help on these matters.